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Prayer

Summary:

Prayer is a fundamental part of the daily life of Christians on their journey to the Kingdom of God. After belief in the gospel message and a commitment to a new life through baptism, we are commanded to pray regularly to our Heavenly Father through Jesus as our mediator (I Timothy 2.5).

A dictionary defines prayer as:

• solemn request or thanksgiving to God
• devout supplication to God
• beseech earnestly for or entreat

To the believer, prayer is far more important. It is the highest activity of which the human spirit is capable and put simply is communication with God. The importance of prayer in the Bible can be highlighted by counting how often the words "pray", "prayed" and "prayer" appear. There are approximately, 230 references in the Old Testament and 160 in the New Testament. The four gospels alone have 66 references including

• the prayers of Zacharias and Mary,
• the many prayers of Jesus, and
• Jesus talking about prayer to his disciples.

To learn more about prayer, we will focus on what Jesus says on the subject.

How not to pray

Jesus instructs his followers to avoid common mistakes when praying:

• Don't pray to impress other people or to show off: "And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward." (Matthew 6.5).
• Don't make your prayers long as this does not impress God: "Beware of the scribes, who…for a pretence make long prayers. These will receive greater condemnation." (Mark 12.38-40).
• Don't repeat yourself or use meaningless words as this stops you thinking about what you are saying: "...when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words." (Matthew 6.7).
• Don't pray to remind God what you need: "Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask him." (Matthew 6.8).

Prayer is so important for our salvation that Jesus instructs us how to pray in great detail and we just need to read his words from the gospels.

Where to pray

Firstly it is ideal to choose a good place to pray as it should be a personal communication with God. However circumstances do not always dictate that this is possible. For example we read in the Old Testament about Nehemiah who was cupbearer to Artaxerxes king of Persia and he offered a spontaneous prayer prior to answering a question from the king (see Nehemiah 2.4).

The teaching of Jesus is:

"But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly"

• Matthew 6.6

Jesus told his disciples to pray somewhere quiet and free from distractions. In this verse he also says that we are to pray to our "Father". Addressing God as our heavenly Father helps us develop the right attitude in prayer. We can better communicate with God when we think of the relationship between a child and his or her father.

• Jesus says we should resist the pressures to accumulate material things, and pray only for what we need

Praying for forgiveness

Later in that chapter there is more advice about prayer and forgiveness. Immediately after the familiar words of the "Lord's prayer" we read:

"For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses"

• Matthew 6.14, 15

Asking for forgiveness for our own weaknesses which are transgressions of God’'s law, can only be gained when we already demonstrate that we do the same to others.

Prayers will sometimes include asking our heavenly Father for the things we need. Later in this chapter, Jesus covers that in more detail but with a warning to ask for the right things first:

"Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

• Matthew 6.19-21

Introspection

• In his reference to the eye, Jesus says it is easy for us to spot other people's faults whilst ignoring far more serious ones of our own

If it is our fundamental desire to gain a place in the kingdom of God on earth, then that should be the main object of our prayers. By praying for this regularly, we remind ourselves of this long term goal in life and refocus our efforts to attain it. Jesus said "seek first the kingdom of God" (Matthew 6.32). This can help us to make plans and to make progress towards our ultimate goal. This brings us to think about a further benefit of quiet thoughtful prayer. Jesus said:

"How can you say to your brother, "Let me remove the speck from your eye"; and look, a plank is in your own eye? Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye."

• Matthew 7.4, 5

How are you going to realise you have a plank in the eye? It takes careful thought and introspection in prayer. Asking for God's help to give us insight into our own behaviour and how we can improve it. Prayer should never include comments about other people, unless it is in the context of asking for strength to encourage and help other believers and our neighbours. Jesus recommends prayer to avoid sins committed by our sinful nature so that we don't yield to temptations. Even Jesus prayed for strength as the time of his crucifixion drew near. During Jesus' last night in the Garden of Gethsemane he said to Peter:

" Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak"

• Matthew 26.41

Jesus himself was praying for strength before his trial. We might not be facing such great problems but we still need strength to resist temptations and to follow Christ's commands.

A model prayer

Any article about prayer in the Bible should not avoid mentioning this very special prayer of Jesus. The "Lord's Prayer" is just 67 words in length but teaches us so much about prayer and what we need to focus on. Here is a reminder of the words (Matthew 6.9-13):

This is a prayer that we should study carefully. After all, Jesus tells us this is a model prayer to follow with the words "In this manner". The Lord's Prayer can be summarised in six parts, which we can then use in our own prayers. Briefly, these are:

Praise and glory to God verse 9

• We need to recognise that God is all powerful and we must honour him in our lives.

God is in control verse 10

• We humbly acknowledge that God will carry out His plan for the world with or without us.

Gratefulness and thanksgiving verse 11

• We need to acknowledge that God provides everything we have in our lives.

Forgiveness verse 12

• We need to recognise that we are sinners and without forgiveness and God’s mercy we cannot be saved.

Strength and help verse 13 (first part)

• We need God's help to overcome and wait patiently for Christ's return.

The Kingdom of God verse 13 (second part)

• A reminder that the coming kingdom of God must be the focus of our lives and it should encourage us to do the right things.

The prayers of Jesus

There are six other prayers of Jesus recorded in the New Testament and each of them is worthy of further study. Here are some of the key points. After Jesus sent out seventy followers to preach the gospel of the kingdom of God on earth, they returned and reported their successes to him. Jesus then gave a spontaneous prayer of thanks:

"In that hour Jesus rejoiced in the Spirit and said, "I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and revealed them to babes. Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in your sight"."

• Luke 10.21

The lesson for us in this account is that we don't need a theology degree to understand the gospel and gain salvation. There is also a slight hint here that Jesus thought it humorous that ordinary folk could see the wisdom in the message but not those who think they are "wise". In the Gospel of John we read about the amazing miracle of the resurrection of Lazarus which Jesus performed by the power of the Holy Spirit:

"Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead man was lying. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. And I know that you always hear me, but because of the people who are standing by I said this, that they may believe that you sent me."

• John 11.41, 42

In the Bible, we mainly read about the prayers that Jesus offered in public. In this particular case Jesus was praying so those listening would know that God was acting through him and the miracle was not to glorify himself but to strengthen their belief in God.

• Ancient olive trees in Gethsemane where Jesus prayed shortly before his death.

John chapter 17 records a very moving prayer of Jesus, where he prays for himself, for his disciples and for all believers. These inspiring words remind us that:

• God and Jesus are one in thought
• Jesus looked after those given to him by God
• Jesus gave his disciples the knowledge of the Word, his love, God's name, the Truth, joy and the prospect of future glory
• Jesus prayed for those who would receive the gospel message in every age: "I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in me through their word" (John 17.20).

After his triumphal entry into Jerusalem, Jesus prayed to his Father for deliverance from his coming ordeal: "Now my soul is troubled, and what shall I say? "Father, save me from this hour"? But for this purpose I came to this hour. Father, glorify your name."

Then a voice came from heaven, saying,

"I have both glorified it and will glorify it again"

• John 12.27, 28

This prayer is remarkable as it lets us know that while Jesus found facing his death a personal struggle, he also had an immediate answer from God which shows that God is listening. In the garden of Gethsemane, Jesus was facing his trial and death. We can learn a lot from these intense prayers:

"Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, "My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will but as you will”. He went away a second time and prayed, "My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done"."

• Matthew 26.39, 42 NIV

At this time of intense mental suffering Jesus was thinking beyond the immediate future and about the blessing of his long term future. The lesson is for us to think and pray for our long term good and equally put our trust in God.

Even from the cross Jesus was concerned for others in this astonishing short prayer:

"Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do." And they divided His garments and cast lots."

• Luke 23.34

Then last of all in his dying breath he prayed about himself: "And when Jesus had cried out with a loud voice, he said, "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit." And having said this, he breathed his last"

• Luke 23.46

This shows a remarkable level of absolute faith that God would raise him from the dead, a state of mind we should all aim for.

The word "amen"

There are 54 references in the Bible to the word "amen" which literally means "so be it". An example from the Old Testament is in the book of Psalms which records many of the prayers of David king of Israel. Psalm 72 is a prayer about the changes that will take place when God's kingdom is established on earth. It concludes with these words:

"Blessed be the LORD God, the God of Israel, who only does wondrous things! And blessed be his glorious name for ever! And let the whole earth be filled with his glory. Amen and Amen"

• Psalm 72.18,19

We note that New Testament writers often end their letters using the word "amen". As it is used in the Lord's Prayer we are clearly instructed to use it in our own prayers in the sense of "please let it be as we have prayed". In conclusion we list some practical advice for your prayers based on the examples recorded in the Bible:

• Find a quiet place and time regularly
• Use the word "Father" and acknowledge His greatness
• Thank God for providing our daily needs
• Ask for
  • Strength
  • Humility
  • Forgiveness
• Pray for others
• Focus on the coming Kingdom of God at Christ's return
• A time for introspection, perspective, acknowledging failings and resetting priorities
• No babbling, repetition or "stock phrases"
• God knows what we need already but still ask
• Persist in prayer but accept that God decides when and how we will be answered